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. 2018 Dec:270:459-466.
doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.10.011. Epub 2018 Oct 9.

Neurocognitive and theory of mind deficits and poor social competence in schizophrenia: The moderating role of social disinterest attitudes

Thanh P Le  1 , Jason L Holden  2 , Peter C Link  2 , Eric L Granholm  3
Affiliations

Neurocognitive and theory of mind deficits and poor social competence in schizophrenia: The moderating role of social disinterest attitudes

Thanh P Le et al. Psychiatry Res. 2018 Dec.

Abstract

Neurocognitive and theory of mind deficits, dysfunctional attitudes, and negative symptoms have all been linked to poor functioning in schizophrenia, but interactions among these factors have not been extensively examined. We investigated whether dysfunctional attitudes (e.g., defeatist performance beliefs and social disinterest attitudes) moderated associations between neurocognition and theory of mind and poor everyday functioning and social competence in 146 participants with schizophrenia. We examined whether cognitive deficits are more likely to influence functioning in participants with more severe dysfunctional attitudes. Social disinterest, but not defeatist performance, attitudes were found to moderate associations between cognitive deficits and social competence but not everyday functioning, such that neurocognition and theory of mind deficits were only associated with poorer social competence in participants with more severe social disinterest attitudes. In contrast, no significant moderation effects were found for defeatist performance beliefs. Findings indicate that deficits in abilities were less likely to impact social competence in participants with greater interest in socializing. It may be that greater motivation for socializing engenders increased practice and engagement in social interactions, which then leads to greater social competence despite poor cognitive abilities. Treatments that target social disinterest attitudes may lead to greater social competence and engagement.

Keywords: Dysfunctional attitudes; Neurocognition; Social competence; Social disinterest attitudes; Theory of mind.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest

Dr. Granholm has an equity interest in Granholm Consulting, Inc., a company that may potentially benefit from the research results as he receives income from the company for CBSST workshops and consulting. The terms of this arrangement have been reviewed and approved by the University of California, San Diego in accordance with its conflict of interest policies.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Moderating effect of defeatist performance beliefs on the relationship between cognition and functional outcome. Moderation effects were not significant for any combination of variables shown. Note. NP = Neurocognition; ToM = Theory of Mind; ILSS = Independent Living Skills Survey; MASC = Maryland Assessment of Social Competence; Solid line = −1 SD below (Low Defeatist Performance Beliefs); Dash line = Mean (Moderate Defeatist Performance Beliefs); Dotted line = 1 SD above (High Defeatist Performance Beliefs).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Moderating effect of social disinterest attitudes on the relationship between cognition and functional outcome. Significant moderation effects were not found for everyday functioning (ILSS) but were found for social competence (MASC) for both neurocognition and theory of mind. Note. NP = Neurocognition; ToM = Theory of Mind; ILSS = Independent Living Skills Survey; MASC = Maryland Assessment of Social Competence; Solid line = 1 SD below (Low Social Disinterest Attitudes); Dash line = Mean (Moderate Social Disinterest Attitudes); Dotted line = 1 SD above (High Social Disinterest Attitudes).
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